


The Other Side of the Wall

by Tricochet



Series: Ebony and Ivory Sharpe [3]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Ava Is An Asshole, F/F, Neighbors AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-28 18:54:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13277781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tricochet/pseuds/Tricochet
Summary: When someone moves into the empty apartment next to Sara, she resolves to get to know the beautiful-yet-hostile woman.





	The Other Side of the Wall

**Author's Note:**

> I've gotten requests for more Ivory and Ebony Sharpe, so I hope everyone enjoys! This fic contains mentions of vaccines and veterinary visits, just to warn you.

Sara walks in to her apartment building. The man at the desk greets her. 

“Ms. Lance, you might be interested to know that someone has rented out the apartment to your left.”

Sara sighs. “Thank you, Gary.”

Apartment 12D had been empty for as long as Sara had lived in the building, and she liked it that way. The walls were so thin that if someone had lived there, she would have heard every step they took. Sara hopes that the new tenant is polite and well-behaved. 

Sara is about to step onto the elevator when she sees a stack of boxes coming towards her. Assuming it’s her new neighbor, it wouldn’t hurt to get on their good side.

“Need a hand?” Sara offers to the boxes.

A blonde head looks out from behind them. The woman looks to be within a few years of Sara, but much, much angrier.

“No thanks. I’m good,” she says. 

“Are you sure?” Sara asks. The new woman is trying to push the boxes along, but she can’t see from behind them, and the wheels on her cart keep getting caught. She frowns even more.

“I’m- good!” the woman grunts, shoving the cart. Sara bends down next to her and lifts one side. The woman glares at her, then reluctantly carries the other. Sara presses the button to summon the elevator. It dings open and Sara helps carry the boxes inside.

“You didn’t have to do that,” the woman says. 

“A simple ‘thank you’ would be sufficient,” Sara says, rolling her eyes back. 

“Ha ha,” the woman says sarcastically. “I’m Ava.”

“Sara. Are you moving into 12D?”

“How’d you know?”

“I live right next to it.”

“Oh, God. We’re going to be neighbors,” Ava says. She doesn’t look too thrilled. 

“Need any help unpacking?” Sara says, throwing her arm around Ava’s shoulders. 

“No. I don’t want anyone messing it up,” Ava says. Sara smirks. 

“I’ll put your table on the ceiling.”

Ava looks a little amused for the first time. 

“Nah. But I’d appreciate it if you would move the boxes off of the cart so I can go back down and get the rest of them.”

Sara moves the boxes down and watches Ava take the elevator down again. The woman seems almost entirely unfriendly and hostile, but she’s very pretty, and Sara likes a challenge. 

 

 

 

 

 

“Ebony, baby!” Sara can hear Ava saying through the wall. She can’t believe that Ava actually greeted someone with affection.

Ebony doesn’t say anything back, at least not that Sara can hear.

“How was your day, sweetie?” Ava asks. 

Sara listens closely, but still can’t hear a response. She wonders what kind of name ‘Ebony’ is. She hadn’t figured Ava to have a girlfriend when they met, but maybe Ebony is just her friend.

“I love you,” Ava says to Ebony, and Sara frowns. She’s almost disappointed. But if Ebony is also her neighbor, she might as well say hello to them too. 

Sara grabs a plate of cookies she had bought and knocks on 12D.

Ava opens the door up glaring at her, even though it’s only a quarter past eight at night. She’s already wearing pajamas that look just like a pantsuit. Her hair is down, and Sara thinks again that she’s pretty.

“What is it?”

“Hi!” Sara says. “I brought some cookies for my new neighbors.” 

“Oh,” Ava says. “It’s just me, though.”

Sara stares at her. “I thought… well, the walls are kind of thin, and I thought you were talking to someone called Ebony.”

“Oh,” Ava says. She looks almost embarrassed. 

She opens her mouth part of the way to say something, then something brushes against Sara’s leg.

Sara jumps a little bit, then leans down to stroke the black cat.

“Ebony, meet Sara. Sara, this is Ebony,” Ava says.

“Ebony is your cat?” Sara says. She chuckles. It’s hard to believe that the grumpy-yet-beautiful woman who didn’t want Sara to help her move in likes to ask her cat how her day was.

Ava doesn’t look amused. 

“Sorry. It’s a little funny. I thought Ebony was, like, your girlfriend.”

“Evidently not,” Ava says. She doesn’t say anything about not being into girls, so Sara figures it’s a safe bet that she’s gay. 

Another cat walks in on the bare counter. Sara reaches for her, and the cat rubs her face on Sara’s hand.

“You have two cats?” Sara says.

Ava nods, still not looking pleased.

“Yes. This is Ivory. I can’t see why she likes you, since she usually hates everyone.”

Sara scratches Ivory behind her plush ears. 

“She has good taste,” Sara jokes, and again, Ava cracks a faint smile. 

 

 

“Hi,” Sara says, at Ava’s door again. 

Ava stares at her for a second.

“Hello,” Ava says cautiously.

“I brought you a housewarming gift,” Sara says.

“You didn’t have to-” Ava starts.

“Don’t worry, it’s not actually for you. Where are Ebony and Ivory?”

“They were drinking from the shower. They really like the shower here.”

“Well, I got them a little thing. I know the apartments here aren’t very big, so I got a little floating platform for them.”

Ivory jumps into it before Sara can even start to hang it.

“That’s very nice,” Ava says eventually. “Do you want to sit down?”

“Sure,” Sara says, taking a seat on Ava’s sofa. “So why did you move to these parts?”

“I got a job out here. I didn’t really want to move the ladies out here, since they’re not fans of driving, but it seems like they’re doing alright here.”

“I knew you’d be the type of pet owner to call your cats ‘ladies’,” Sara says. 

Ava laughs. 

“They’re very spoiled. I took this job so I can buy them more cat treats.”

“They deserve it,” Sara says. Ebony is purring in her lap. 

“How long has this apartment been vacant?” Ava asks.

“Ever since I moved in next door.”

“Did somebody get murdered in here or something?” 

“Not that I know of.”

"Hmm. Was it that nobody wanted to live next to you?"

"No!" Sara says. She's laughing at Ava's surprising sense of humor.

 

 

“Would you like to come over more often? Just so Ivory can make some more friends? She's usually really anti-social and hates everyone.”

“I would love to,” Sara says, not mentioning the similarity between cat and owner. “So how did you name them?”

“I was thinking about how their fur looks like lace, and then I decided to call them ‘Ivory’ and ‘Ebony’ based on their coloring. Their full names are actually ‘Ivory Lace Sharpe’ and ‘Ebony Lace Sharpe’.”

“I knew you’d be the type of person to have your cats take your last name,” Sara says. 

Ava frowns. “They’re my family.”

“I know,” Sara says, stretching out on Ava’s couch. Ebony sits on her lap. 

Sara pets her gently.

“How long have you had these two?” Sara asks.

“I adopted them almost three years ago.”

“Aww.”

“Yeah. I got them with my ex, even though she wasn’t a fan of cats.”

Sara mentally registers that she was right. Ava is into ladies.

“I’ve dated girls like that too,” Sara says. “I don’t trust people who don’t have empathy for animals.”

Ava nods. She’s still calm, reserved, and elegant. “Wise words, Miss Sara.”

Ebony purrs and rubs her face into Sara’s hand. 

“Is she going to get up soon?” Sara asks.

Sara sees a faint hint of a smile on Ava’s face. “Nope. You’re stuck there until she decides to release you.”

 

 

“Hi,” Sara says on the elevator.

“Hello,” Ava says uncomfortably. 

“How are you doing?” Sara says after an awkward silence.

“I’m fine, thank you,” Ava says stiffly. 

“How are the ladies?”

“They are fine, thank you,” Ava says, in the exact same tone. 

“Are you sure you’re doing alr-“

“Yes! I’m fine, Sara!” Ava snaps. Sara raises her eyebrows and takes a step back. 

“Okay then.”

Ava turns around to face Sara. “I’m sorry. It’s just time for their vet checkup, and I hate taking them.”

“Oh. Is it just, like, shots?”

“Yeah. They get really unhappy, though. Especially Ivory. It’s hard to carry both of them, too.”

“Oh,” Sara says. “When is the appointment?”

“One hour. I’m not excited.”

“Do you want help?” Sara offers.

Ava sighs. “I want to say I don’t, but the truth is, I do. I just want what’s best for them.”

“Okay,” Sara says. “Shall we?”

Ava opens her apartment. Ebony and Ivory meow and weave around her feet.

“I know, angels. And I am very sorry about this,” Ava says. She scoops Ivory up, and Sara opens a carrier from the top and helps move all of Ivory’s appendages inside. 

They shut the carrier and look around for Ebony. The black cat had made herself scarce after seeing her sister captured. Sara sees her crouching behind the table and points. She and Ava approach from opposite sides. Sara holds Ebony and slides her into the carrier. They check the locks on the carriers and each pick up one of them. 

Sara presses the elevator button, and they both walk on. Sara sets Ebony’s carrier down to make sure it doesn’t shake.

Gary waves to them at the front desk. Sara smiles back. Ava leads her to the parking garage. 

“Would you sit in the backseat with them?” Ava asks. Sara nods and sets Ebony down behind the driver’s seat. She climbs in the middle seat, and Ava puts Ivory on her right. Sara puts a hand on each of the carriers and starts whispering to the cats. Ava starts the car, and the cats meow. 

Sara keeps talking to them for the whole ride. When Ava parks, Sara carries Ebony into the office. 

“Hi, Ms. Sharpe,” a woman at the front desk says. Ava hands Ivory’s carrier to Sara to fill out some paperwork. It’s a relief to both of them when the vet calls them back. 

The vet opens both the carrier doors and starts talking to Ava about the cats. 

“So how are they doing with the move?”

“Good, actually. They really like it at my new building.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Who have you got with you?”

“This is Sara, my neighbor. It’s a lot easier to get them here with two.”

Ivory wanders out of the cage. The vet lifts her up and starts examining her. He weighs her and feels her ribs. 

“Good. The diet is working. She’s back at her target weight.”

Ava nods. “I’ve been monitoring her food intake.”

The vet gives her a few injections. She stares at Sara like she’s expecting Sara to stop the vet.

“Sorry, pal,” Sara says. “Gotta happen.”

The vet sets her down, and she runs back into the kennel. Ebony doesn’t look ready to come out, so the vet talks to her. She eventually stands outside. 

He sweeps her up like he’d done to Ivory. She tries to stand on his back. He laughs and goes to get the shots. 

He sets her back on the table and injects the shots. She squirms.

“They are both in good health,” he says, printing out two sheets of extra data. 

Ava takes the sheets and thanks him. Sara carries Ivory this time.

“Thank you for coming with me,” Ava says. 

“You needed me,” Sara says. 

 

 

 

“Hey. How was work?” Sara says.

Ava looks exhausted, but still greets Sara. 

“Work was a mess.”

“What do you do for a living?” 

“I deal with a bunch of dumbasses on government stuff.”

“Sounds exciting,” Sara says. 

“It’s a lot of paperwork and explaining the same basic thing over and over.”

“Fun,” Sara says.

“How was your day?” Ava asks, and Sara can tell she’s putting in effort to be nice. They get off of the elevator and walk to Ava’s apartment. 

“Intense. I’m filming a movie.”

“You an actor?”

“Of sorts. I’m a stunt double.”

“Oh. Wow,” Ava says. “That sounds a lot more interesting than my job. Do you want some tea?”

“Sure. It’s very hard work, but I haven’t died yet.” 

“I’m glad,” Ava says. “You haven’t died, I mean.”

“Aww, that’s so nice,” Sara says. Ava glares. 

Ivory jumps into Sara’s lap and purrs. Sara strokes her. 

Ava sits down next to them. She’s taller than Sara, and Sara turns her head to look at her. 

Ava smiles at Sara. 

“Sorry I was an asshole when we met. I’m just normally kind of like that,” Ava says.

“It’s alright. I had to forgive you, because otherwise I couldn’t pet your cats.”

“You sure that’s it?” Ava says. 

“Pretty sure, yeah,” Sara says. She smiles at Ava so she knows she’s joking.

“Do you want to go to a movie or something sometime?” Ava asks after a pause.

“Like, a date?” Sara asks. 

Ava nods.

Sara smiles, and rotates her torso so she can lean up to kiss Ava on the couch. Ivory jumps away, but Sara doesn’t care, because Ava is kissing her back and it’s so nice. Sara smiles into the kiss and tilts her head for a better angle. 

The teapot starts hissing, and Ava sighs.

“I will be right back,” she says, planting a kiss on Sara’s lips.

Ebony and Ivory stand together. This is the first time Sara has sensed any real hostility from them. Ebony walks over to Sara and looks at Ava. Then she digs her claws into Sara’s leg.

“Ow! What was that for? I thought you liked me!” Sara says. Ivory stares over at Ava, and then bites Sara’s ankle.

“You too? What did I… Ava? I think your cats just gave me the shovel talk,” Sara says. 

Ava turns around holding cups of tea and sits down next to her again.

“They’re just jealous. Now, shall we continue?”


End file.
